Unreliable Carriers

[bellcitytransport]

Has anyone else on the broker side seen an increase in misinformation from carriers? Reliability of carriers that were once good has fallen way off. The lies are almost a daily routine.
In the current market I would have expected to see a stronger attempt from a carrier to stand out from the rest, to offer accurate updates, ETA, etc.
Has the lower rates forced carriers to cut corners in the maintenance department? Based on the recent trend of excuses I would have to say yes, more trucks are breaking down now than ever before based on carrier's reasons for delays.
What's your thoughts/experience in the last couple months.

 

[Ruler]

If brokers would stop trying to gouge the carriers and pay the proper rates, then you would get the right carriers that need the rates to move the equipment they have, and pay the staff they need to maintain the communication to pay the bills. Then all would make more money in the long run. thus better communication, thus less excuses why loads not getting there on time.
In other words.....

Make money on lots of freight rather than making all the money on one load..

Come on brokers lets come up with standard rates and work together instead of against each other.

Then we all make money as a team...….

 

[bellcitytransport]

If brokers would stop trying to gouge the carriers and pay the proper rates, then you would get the right carriers that need the rates to move the equipment they have, and pay the staff they need to maintain the communication to pay the bills. Then all would make more money in the long run. thus better communication, thus less excuses why loads not getting there on time.
In other words.....

Make money on lots of freight rather than making all the money on one load..

Come on brokers lets come up with standard rates and work together instead of against each other.

Then we all make money as a team...….

Ahh I see.. our rpm on our own trucks have dropped as a result of market rates, yet we continue to offer accurate updates, our service level doesn't drop based upon the revenue the trucks generates. I would expect our staff to provide the same level of service to every customer regardless of what they are paying.

Keep in mind, brokers don't set the rates.. Perhaps on contract lanes there might be better profit levels to the broker or even a carrier depending when the lanes where awarded, and I completely agree with you in that perspective, however when those lanes come up for quote again, the competition will be there and the rates will drop.

 

[Freight Broker]

You may not believe it, but many of us are actually pulling in the same direction with respect to rates. Last thing I want as a broker is rates that are too cheap for the freight to move. Not getting the business in the first place is preferrable to getting the business and then having to apologize to the customer for not being able to move their freight..

 

[MikeJr]

To touch on the original question I'd say that the LTL landscarpe has changed a bit. There are a bunch of companies (more in the states than here) that are either closed or operating at limited hours. It makes it really hard for a 'milk run' LTL carrier to try and get their truck filled out in one or even two days. It'll increase service times as a result and yes they may lile a little about when they will pick up in order to try and keep the freight on their board. I see some LTL shippers offering limited windows for pickup, noon to 2PM for example. Try arranging 8 pickups with short windows like this on several of them. I would also prefer a carrier to be more honest about pick up and delivery ETA's for sure.

There are also several LTL carriers that have flat out decided to do TL only until there are more open shippers on their lanes.

We all see the same thing I hope, every month since May has been better than the previous for volumes, more and more companies back to operating and sadly because there is so much competition for less freight then 'usual', margins are down some.

Have a great day everyone,
Mike

 

[Trans]

Has anyone else on the broker side seen an increase in misinformation from carriers? Reliability of carriers that were once good has fallen way off. The lies are almost a daily routine.
In the current market I would have expected to see a stronger attempt from a carrier to stand out from the rest, to offer accurate updates, ETA, etc.
Has the lower rates forced carriers to cut corners in the maintenance department? Based on the recent trend of excuses I would have to say yes, more trucks are breaking down now than ever before based on carrier's reasons for delays.
What's your thoughts/experience in the last couple months.

Hey, Bell City are you a broker or just a Carrier? If you are just a Carrier then we should not be selling our freight in the first place right? or the reason could be its cheaper to move freight with another carrier then your own equipment?

 

[BPOVFB]

@Trans Or they have multiple customers across multiple jurisdictions that they can't have trucks in place for all time? Carriers need to get off from the cross, we need the wood - not everyone is a buck a mile broker but my god you would think we all are from this forum. The quality of carriers has shifted, the quality of brokers has shifted and folks are grasping at straws... when that energy could be used to go on indeed/linked in - heck even the classifieds - hire a business development agent and try your hand at.

 

[bellcitytransport]

Hey, Bell City are you a broker or just a Carrier? If you are just a Carrier then we should not be selling our freight in the first place right? or the reason could be its cheaper to move freight with another carrier then your own equipment?

We are what is classified as an asset based broker, we have our broker authority and bond. We don't sell off our extra freight. We provide a service to our customers, completely transparent. There are many times when we provide a customer with the choice, here is what our equipment costs to move, should you choose, or here is the market rate as provided by carriers. We allow the customer to make the choice.

I don't know another carriers business, so for me to take a load on my truck to destination where I rarely have a reload if one at all would not be operationally wise. However the carrier whom wants the load may have a reload near that destination on a daily or weekly basis and needs to get their truck to that higher paying load.

 

[Freight Broker]

The capacity pendulum has already swung the other way in some sectors/regions.. Flatbed trucks are once again in short supply..Steel loads piling up.. especially down south.

 

[Fr8Guru]

Has anyone else on the broker side seen an increase in misinformation from carriers? Reliability of carriers that were once good has fallen way off. The lies are almost a daily routine.
In the current market I would have expected to see a stronger attempt from a carrier to stand out from the rest, to offer accurate updates, ETA, etc.
Has the lower rates forced carriers to cut corners in the maintenance department? Based on the recent trend of excuses I would have to say yes, more trucks are breaking down now than ever before based on carrier's reasons for delays.
What's your thoughts/experience in the last couple months.

My experience is that all the RFQ's that happened at the beginning of the year are coming back to haunt everyone. Brokers went in cheap thinking the market would hold and capacity would be there, seems the tides are turning a bit. Carriers got beat up by shippers on their contracted rates when it came time for renewal, they agreed to the cheaper rate but now you have to find that perfect backhaul to make the rate work. Otherwise, you lose money on both ends. And now you have shippers who locked in that great price with XYZ broker/carrier having to pay twice as much on the spot market.

I've already had 2 customers requote half of their RFQ because pricing wasn't being honored. One removed all the brokers/carriers from their routing guide who weren't honoring their pricing. (wish more people would do this)

 

[Rob]

My experience is that all the RFQ's that happened at the beginning of the year are coming back to haunt everyone. Brokers went in cheap thinking the market would hold and capacity would be there, seems the tides are turning a bit. Carriers got beat up by shippers on their contracted rates when it came time for renewal, they agreed to the cheaper rate but now you have to find that perfect backhaul to make the rate work. Otherwise, you lose money on both ends. And now you have shippers who locked in that great price with XYZ broker/carrier having to pay twice as much on the spot market.

I've already had 2 customers requote half of their RFQ because pricing wasn't being honored. One removed all the brokers/carriers from their routing guide who weren't honoring their pricing. (wish more people would do this)

Looks good on everyone and anyone that is taking a beating on RFQ,s. I cannot for the life of me understand why brokers and carriers even fill those damn things out. The are now and have always been a race to the bottom. Want cheap prices you get what you pay for.

In regards to Bellcity we have done freight for them many times and i for one will not have a problem taking a load from them as the rate is always fair and if not they do not get offended if I say that i cannot make it work for x rate. Lots of carrier broker as some of us have direct customers and sometimes we cannot make everything happen on company assets be it timing, power issues etc.

 

[bellcitytransport]

Looks good on everyone and anyone that is taking a beating on RFQ,s. I cannot for the life of me understand why brokers and carriers even fill those damn things out. The are now and have always been a race to the bottom. Want cheap prices you get what you pay for.

In regards to Bellcity we have done freight for them many times and i for one will not have a problem taking a load from them as the rate is always fair and if not they do not get offended if I say that i cannot make it work for x rate. Lots of carrier broker as some of us have direct customers and sometimes we cannot make everything happen on company assets be it timing, power issues etc.

Thank you, and I couldn't agree more. I enjoy when a customer returns the RFQ telling you that you're too high, and their "target" rate. What was the point in completing the thing. Simply tell us what you want to pay. If you set a target rate and inform those completing the RFQ that they are too high what's the point.

 

[tasuinam]

Looks good on everyone and anyone that is taking a beating on RFQ,s. I cannot for the life of me understand why brokers and carriers even fill those damn things out. The are now and have always been a race to the bottom. Want cheap prices you get what you pay for.

In regards to Bellcity we have done freight for them many times and i for one will not have a problem taking a load from them as the rate is always fair and if not they do not get offended if I say that i cannot make it work for x rate. Lots of carrier broker as some of us have direct customers and sometimes we cannot make everything happen on company assets be it timing, power issues etc.

That is so true - we filled out a few for loads and when we asked for updates were told we were on the higher side ...then I see the same loads/lanes on open board.....interesting much me thinks

 

[Fr8Guru]

Looks good on everyone and anyone that is taking a beating on RFQ,s. I cannot for the life of me understand why brokers and carriers even fill those damn things out. The are now and have always been a race to the bottom. Want cheap prices you get what you pay for.

In regards to Bellcity we have done freight for them many times and i for one will not have a problem taking a load from them as the rate is always fair and if not they do not get offended if I say that i cannot make it work for x rate. Lots of carrier broker as some of us have direct customers and sometimes we cannot make everything happen on company assets be it timing, power issues etc.

I wonder if people will start shying away from the outsourcing of their logistics to Transplace, CH etc.
Those are the guys who are always pushing the RFQ.
People fill them out because some times it's the only way in. One of the ones I mentioned, we only won 5 low volume lanes (total 20 a year) because our rates were too high. But now that we are in, we've been able to requote different lanes, demonstrate service levels and are up to 5 -10 loads a day.

 

[Gord M]

If brokers would stop trying to gouge the carriers and pay the proper rates, then you would get the right carriers that need the rates to move the equipment they have, and pay the staff they need to maintain the communication to pay the bills. Then all would make more money in the long run. thus better communication, thus less excuses why loads not getting there on time.
In other words.....

Make money on lots of freight rather than making all the money on one load..

Come on brokers lets come up with standard rates and work together instead of against each other.

Then we all make money as a team...….

Greed...........its the plight of humanity. Everyone wants a piece of what someone else has.........Brokers pay whatever they have to pay and not a penny more because they are greedy. Carriers turned broker do exactly the same thing, we are all turning into Donald Trump. Greed, Greed,Greed!

 

[Freight Broker]

I think the best way to go with RFQ's is to initially cherry pick the loads that you know you can do for sure.. Once in the door, and once you've been abe to do a few loads then go ahead and quote the other lanes. Many people invest too much time at the outset quoting everything. Most shippers really only want you to quote your core lanes... It's almost counterintuitive.. if you only quote your core lanes you're seen as something of an expert in your lanes.. If you quote everyhting you're regarded as a one stop shop that likely can't do anything very well.

 

[bellcitytransport]

I think the best way to go with RFQ's is to initially cherry pick the loads that you know you can do for sure.. Once in the door, and once you've been abe to do a few loads then go ahead and quote the other lanes. Many people invest too much time at the outset quoting everything. Most shippers really only want you to quote your core lanes... It's almost counterintuitive.. if you only quote your core lanes you're seen as something of an expert in your lanes.. If you quote everyhting you're regarded as a one stop shop that likely can't do anything very well.

I couldn't agree more. Focus on the lanes that you do, the lanes you know you have a decent back haul, inbound or outbound. Prove yourself, your service level, they will notice and provide you with opportunity to grow.

 

[Jim L]

Has anyone else on the broker side seen an increase in misinformation from carriers? Reliability of carriers that were once good has fallen way off. The lies are almost a daily routine.
In the current market I would have expected to see a stronger attempt from a carrier to stand out from the rest, to offer accurate updates, ETA, etc.
Has the lower rates forced carriers to cut corners in the maintenance department? Based on the recent trend of excuses I would have to say yes, more trucks are breaking down now than ever before based on carrier's reasons for delays.
What's your thoughts/experience in the last couple months.

From a carriers point of view, we have had some horrible experiences - some that has already been touched on. We continue to get screwed over and over. This week we spent 10 hours at one receiver waiting to get unloaded and for a different freight broker at different location we spent 14 hours getting loaded at a shipper. Two other shipments just up and cancelled after the driver arrived and took a considerable amount of time for the freight broker to contact their customers to find out if it was accurate. When those situations happens the domino affect screws up a number of other commitments further down the line. Sometimes we can make up for it with another driver or another combination but when you get one after another after another you just can't fix them all and a failure happens. We hate like hell to make that phone call about the issues affecting a load so we do what we can avoid it.
I don't think its about the rates. Like you said, most of us still continue to offer the same great service - rates or not. The frustrating part is that it seems like it is never acknowledged as it is the assumed expectation to do the job as expected and promised. You get to hear about the competition who gets away with it and then further gets rewarded with additional loads because their rate is $12.00 lower than mine.
I'll echo what I have always said. If they break down, ask for a repair invoice or the phone number of the location that they are at. If they consistently fail don't give them any more loads. If they are the only guy that can do it, tell them that your rate is X if you get it there within my terms and Y if you don't.

 

[loaders]

Back to the original question, yes, we have noticed an increase in service failures at a time when one would think every carrier and broker out there would be wanting to put their best face forward. I think one of the most common excuses is " oh, I was off that day and the rest of the staff just don't know what is going on". REALLY? I have instructed our staff to point this out to the carriers management and tell them that going forward we will not use them for anything time sensitive. Forgetting critical bits of information that are well spelled out on the load confirmation, neglecting to tell the driver that a 7AM delivery was required. Screw ups like this sure make the hungry, door knocking competition look attractive to a frustrated shipper, and a ticked off broker. As for Rulers comments. If a carrier accepts my rate...low, high, medium, doesn't matter, I expect him to provide me with their best service, not some cut rate barely make do stuff. As a broker, I do not make the rates nor do I have the power to force any carrier to accept my rates. In spite of whatever leverage you may think brokers have over this industry, carriers can always trump it by simply saying...."No Thank you, I will pass". I hope I don't sound to pissed off today, it's been of week of poor service from some of our "good" carriers.

 

[bellcitytransport]

From a carriers point of view, we have had some horrible experiences - some that has already been touched on. We continue to get screwed over and over. This week we spent 10 hours at one receiver waiting to get unloaded and for a different freight broker at different location we spent 14 hours getting loaded at a shipper. Two other shipments just up and cancelled after the driver arrived and took a considerable amount of time for the freight broker to contact their customers to find out if it was accurate. When those situations happens the domino affect screws up a number of other commitments further down the line. Sometimes we can make up for it with another driver or another combination but when you get one after another after another you just can't fix them all and a failure happens. We hate like hell to make that phone call about the issues affecting a load so we do what we can avoid it.
I don't think its about the rates. Like you said, most of us still continue to offer the same great service - rates or not. The frustrating part is that it seems like it is never acknowledged as it is the assumed expectation to do the job as expected and promised. You get to hear about the competition who gets away with it and then further gets rewarded with additional loads because their rate is $12.00 lower than mine.
I'll echo what I have always said. If they break down, ask for a repair invoice or the phone number of the location that they are at. If they consistently fail don't give them any more loads. If they are the only guy that can do it, tell them that your rate is X if you get it there within my terms and Y if you don't.

I agree completely Jim, been taking it hard on the asset side when it comes to loads being cancelled. Detention seems to have increased at shippers and receivers, I understand the situation, and we were patient back when it started but now feel like we are being taken advantage of. I have on truck as we speak at a receiver, appointment was for 8am. Driver arrived last night for extra measures, only to be told at check in that he might not be received today. Compensation offered, 1 day layover.